Interesting Rules at my new job

[jbaerbock]

So as some of you know I started a job recently as an Armored Truck Driver. Well apparently they do not let new guys have guns untill 90 day trial period is up (for trust reasons they say). And when they do issue you a gun it stays at work when you leave so you get no target shooting time with it, wth?

Has anyone else experienced dumb rules like this? One good thing is that by the time Im allowed to carry I'll have enough money saved to buy a nice pistol for myself.

[Michael Ledgerwood]

So as some of you know I started a job recently as an Armored Truck Driver. Well apparently they do not let new guys have guns untill 90 day trial period is up (for trust reasons they say). And when they do issue you a gun it stays at work when you leave so you get no target shooting time with it, wth?

Has anyone else experienced dumb rules like this? One good thing is that by the time Im allowed to carry I'll have enough money saved to buy a nice pistol for myself.

Thats not un-heard of. Several armored car companies don't let you take your guns home ( it is company property after all ). I don't know about the 90 day waiting period to be armed, that seems a lil messed up.

[Lawson]

I would not step into that armored car without adequate weaponry.

[OccamsRazor]

I would not step into that armored car without adequate weaponry.

Or decent pay...You know, in our area, they pay most armored guys between $9 and $11 an hour.

[Nauticus]

I'm actually looking to get into Armoured Car services myself. I've been offered $14.75, increasing to $18 after my probation period. I'm training for executive protection, so it's a similar job.

[Lawson]

Or decent pay...You know, in our area, they pay most armored guys between $9 and $11 an hour.

Yeah, I thought about getting into the armored car biz, but when I saw that I'd be taking an approx $5/hr pay cut at most armored car companies, I was flabbergasted. I would have thought they paid at least $15/hr.

[BadBoynMD]

The whole 90-day thing is ridiculous! I can understand not being allowed to take your weapon home, as you only need it for work. Plus, who's to say someone quits, doesn't turn in their weapon. It basically protects the companies liablity.

[NRM_Oz]

Seems bloody stupid to me ........... let you ride shotgun in an escort vehicle if they are so worried about liability but as for the gun being left at work - it's a liability issue an no1 here execpt for remote site guards are permitted to have a gun at home (must be a police approved safe) with annual inspections.

Perhaps the company has ranges they can send you with to have a practice shoot with the same firearm ? Most important it is not the shooting the likes of CZ's the cocking and decocking of the weapon is different from a Glock or even a 1911. Familiarisation takes practice and most companies are reluctant to let you say the word gun these days.

[SecTrainer]

So as some of you know I started a job recently as an Armored Truck Driver. Well apparently they do not let new guys have guns untill 90 day trial period is up (for trust reasons they say). And when they do issue you a gun it stays at work when you leave so you get no target shooting time with it, wth?

Has anyone else experienced dumb rules like this? One good thing is that by the time Im allowed to carry I'll have enough money saved to buy a nice pistol for myself.

It's all good. Gives you 90 days to scope things out properly (and collect a wage while casing things), set things up, and then rob the truck on day 91. Don't be impatient!

If they don't trust you, I don't know why they hired you at all (shoddy background work?), or why they'd let you set foot on a truck. It shouldn't take anyone 90 days to figure out how to get around the little problem of a gun if they hired on for the purpose of robbing a truck.

Or, it could actually be that it takes the bonding company awhile to issue your surety bond and that's what's really driving this policy. The level of "trust" rises dramatically once you're bonded and someone else will take the loss if they're wrong.

Or, their turnover rate could be such that they don't want to incur the actual cost of arming you (such as range time - one assumes?), until they have more confidence that you're going to stay on the job and that you demonstrate the required characteristics (emotional stability, maturity, etc.) to be retained beyond the probationary period. Even extensive ackground checks won't necessarily show that an individual is dispositionally suited for this type of high-stress work.

[Mr. Chaple]

I would imagine it has less to do with "shoddy background work" and more to do with sub-standard interview skills. The combination of low wages/danger often makes it difficult for these companies to find suitable applicants. But, rather than improve wages or recruitment, it is cheaper to simply not arm their employees until they can feel them out. This way they can be surer that no-one will shoot themselves in the foot. then again bonding could have something to do with it...maybe.

[N. A. Corbier]

Its even more interesting because this is Minnesota. The company isn't responsible for getting his firearm permit (but may elect to), his permit is a standard citizen CCW with a "private protective agent" endorsement. So, if he has his citizen CCW with the security endorsement, he could be armed when he walked in the door as a citizen and leave the place armed as a security person.

I'm gonna go with the bonding on this. They probably don't want to spend the cash to bond every tom dick and harry they hire, for whatever reason.

[jbaerbock]

Might be a dumb question but what do you mean by bonding? If offered fulltime at my old job I would take it so we'll see what happens. Only reason I left old job was only 2 shifts a week. So if this may they get another fulltime spot as they might do or one of the guys retires (which may happen) then they are going to call me and ask me to come back. so that would be 1.75 more than what I make as driver now, plus full benefits including health insurance. So we'll see who wins my loyalty in the end.

[craig333]

Hmmm, interesting. The company I looked into wanted you to carry your own weapon and no waiting period. I might have done it but I wasn't interested in being a truck driver (required a class b license).

[Jedi]

Did you ask them what the reasoning was for this policy? If it were my organization, I would be more than willing to answer that question.

[SecTrainer]

Might be a dumb question but what do you mean by bonding? If offered fulltime at my old job I would take it so we'll see what happens. Only reason I left old job was only 2 shifts a week. So if this may they get another fulltime spot as they might do or one of the guys retires (which may happen) then they are going to call me and ask me to come back. so that would be 1.75 more than what I make as driver now, plus full benefits including health insurance. So we'll see who wins my loyalty in the end.

When people are in positions of high trust, their employers will usually take out a sort of insurance policy against theft, etc. This is called a "surety" bond and is issued by a third party (a bonding company, which is sort of like an insurance company).

If the amount of the bond is high enough, the bonding company will perform their own background investigation before issuing the bond. And, if the employee does steal, the bonding company will have the right to investigate the theft because the bonding company is the one that suffers the loss (minus any "deductible").

Anyway...the point is that this process of bonding can take awhile for a new employee, and of course it also costs the employer a "premium".